July 27, 2012

The incurable, incorrigible romantic – Waiting for Forever

Earlier this week I was watching a Netflix-streaming movie called Waiting for Forever. I have no idea how this film got in my queue, with a Rotten Tomato rating of 6% from its critics and not much better from its audience – 43%. It certainly wasn’t because of its stars that I had never heard of, Rachel Bilson and Tom Sturrdige. I suspect the movie was recommended to me by Netflix on the basis of its algorithm-based, eHarmony-inspired calculations. Well, those algorithms apparently have some keen functionality because, even though eHarmony hasn’t sent me any keepers, Waiting for Forever certainly was worth watching.

The critics didn’t like this 2011 romance because of its implausible storyline and, according to the NY Times, “gaseous sentimentality.” And, although Bilson and Sturridge are warm and likeable, my son Jimmy, who was watching it with me, noted that Sturridge’s behavior verged on stalking.

Ultimately, though, I enjoyed the movie (and the tears flowed) because it explored a concept that I can’t get enough of – losing your soulmate. Three of my all-time favorite movies are on the same subject:

Casablanca, with Rick losing Ilsa to nerdy Victor;

The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance, with Tom losing Hallie to nerdy Ransom; and

Gone with the Wind, with Rhett losing Scarlett to nerdy Ashley.

If the movies weren’t enough, two of my all-time favorite songs have the same theme:

“Austin,” by Blake Shelton. The key lyrics in “Austin” are: “What kind of man would hang on that long? What kind of love that must be?”

“He Stopped Loving Her Today,” by George Jones. The key lyrics in “He Stopped Loving Her Today” are: “He said I’ll love you ’til I die. She told him you’ll forget in time. As the years went slowly by, she still preyed upon his mind. He kept her picture on his wall; went half-crazy now and then. He still loved her through it all; hoping she’d come back again.” In the end, he finally stopped loving her, but only when he died – “He stopped loving her today. They placed a wreath upon his door, and soon they’ll carry him away. He stopped loving her today.”

They say that time heals everything and that it is unhealthy or morbid to dwell on past love. But some people believe in the concept of a soulmate as a lifetime partner, whether physically present or not – i.e., if you lose your soulmate, you won’t bother looking for a replacement. Instead, you will live the remainder of your life with that person in your heart and no room for anyone else to take that person’s place.

I don’t know if that’s a sound life-philosophy, but it makes for a helluva enjoyable movie for me. Saw another one just a couple of weeks ago – The Rebound. Its audience score was only 48%, but I loved it. Check it out.